The present invention relates to omnidirectional audio, and more particularly, to omnidirectional audio in a communications device.
Typical communications devices, and in particular, mobile communications devices, such as cellular telephones or mobile radios, have a front mounted transducer, i.e., speaker that may or may not also serve as a microphone. When a mobile radio is used in private mode for private conversations, such as in the case of cellular radios, the user typically places the transducer near his/her ear while simultaneously positioning a microphone proximate to his/her mouth. In contrast, however, when a mobile radio is used in a dispatch mode, such as in the case of a citizens band radio, police radio, a commercial radio, or other public or private band radio, the user typically holds the radio such that the speaker, and microphone, if present, face the user.
In the dispatch mode of operation, holding the speaker and microphone facing the user provides satisfactory operation, so long as the dispatch mode mobile radio is utilized in an area that is relatively free from background noise, and so long as the user continues to hold the dispatch mode mobile radio in position. However, because dispatch mode mobile radios are typically used in a working environment, such as at a construction site, by police officers or security officers in the line of duty, by delivery persons, or by other workers, the user will typically find it inconvenient to hold the dispatch mode mobile radio in position in front of his/her mouth while at the same time attempting to carry out his/her job functions. This is particularly true when the dispatch mode mobile radio is being used only to receive, and not to transmit, i.e., when the use is listening to dispatch mode transmissions, but not transmitting him/herself. Thus, users of dispatch mode mobile radios typically hold the dispatch mode mobile radio at their side, or affix the dispatch mode mobile radio to their belt while they are not transmitting with, i.e., talking on the dispatch mode mobile radio.
Unfortunately, however, if a dispatch mode transmission is received by the dispatch mode mobile radio while it is held in a lowered position, either, for example, in the user's hand, or affixed to the user's belt, the transducer, i.e., speaker, that is in heretofore known dispatch mode mobile radios is not optimally positioned to project sound omnidirectionally such that the user has a maximum possibility of hearing the received transmission regardless of the position in which the dispatch mobile radio is held at the time that the transmission is received. Instead, heretofore known dispatch mode mobile radios typically have a single speaker that projects sound through openings on a front housing.
Also known in the art, are communications devices in which both cellular or other telephone-like functionalities are provided, (i.e., private mode communications) and in which dispatch mode communications are also provided. When such communications devices are in private mode, transmissions are sounded at a low volume. Private conversations can be conducted between the user of the communications device and a remote station, with the user placing the transducer in the communications device proximate to his/her ear (hence the low volume) and the microphone in the communications device proximate to his/her mouth such as with typical telephone devices. When such communications devices are in dispatch mode, dispatch mode transmissions are simultaneously transmitted to and received by a plurality of similar communications devices that sound such transmissions through their transducers at a much higher volume. Thus, in these combination private and dispatch mode communications devices, the possibility is present that the user be exposed to loud (i.e., high volume) dispatch mode communications while the communications device is held with its transducer proximate to the users ear, especially, either preceding, during or following private mode communications (which are at a low volume), thus potentially causing injury and causing discomfort to the user,
Various approaches have been developed to assure that the user is not exposed to loud dispatch mode communications while the communications device is held proximate to the users ear, such as through the use of a "flip" that, when opened, lowers the volume level of the transducer within the communications device to a level appropriate to situations in which the transducer of the communications device is held proximate to the user's ear and, when closed, raises the volume level of the transducer within the communications device to a level appropriate to situations in which the transducer of the communications device is held distant from the user's ear. (See Pawlish, et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,276,916). Without such approaches, however, a risk arises that loud dispatch mode emissions from the transducer will be made while the transducer is held proximate to the user's ear, thus risking discomfort and even injury to the user.
Furthermore, even with such approaches, the transducer in such "flip" mobile radios is not optimally positioned to project sound omnidirectionally, such that the user has a maximum possibility of hearing received transmissions regardless of the position in which the "flip" mobile radio is held at the time the transmission is received.
The present invention advantageously addresses the above and other needs.